The 101 on Taiwan (not to be confused with Taipei 101) (Taiwan, 2024)

As my first leg in my backpacking-across-East-Asia journey, I was ecstatic to get to Taiwan. After an EVA Air flight through Seattle (with some delicious food options), I landed at Taoyuan International Airport at 5 AM and grabbed an EasyCard with a cute little design at the airport itself.

I headed into the city via the Metro and dropped my stuff at Taipei Main Station (if you do this, make sure you know exactly which locker your stuff is in—hundreds of lockers are scattered across this massive station). My first stop of the day was at Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall. After mistaking it for being closed, I walked in through the West entrance and took in the views of the beautiful architecture of the National Concert Hall, the National Theater, and the main gate. The main memorial hall building was still closed, so I walked around the greenery surrounding the area and settled near a beautiful pond overlooking the main square alongside some Taiwanese grandmas doing some morning stretches. At 9 AM, the gates to the main memorial opened and I saw the changing of the guard ceremony in front of the massive sculpture of Chiang Kai-Shek. The grandeur was second-to-none and the main memorial hall provided a great view of the entire area as it was several stories in the air.

My stomach was rumbling throughout the Changing of the Guards ceremony, so I found one of the only spots open at that hour, Ding Yuan Soy Milk. A restaurant with “Soy Milk” in the name felt a little suspicious, but I was too hungry to question it. As I soon discovered, these soy milk spots are very local breakfast spots that serve beverages like soy milk alongside pastries and other bread-based products. The menu being entirely in Chinese (and a poor translation by Google Translate) threw me off, but I ordered by looking at some pictures. The food I got (an egg sandwich and a sesame pastry) was solid but felt a little bland. As I was leaving the store, I realized there was a counter of sauces and various spices I had missed. A personal reminder to look around and be confident in places like this that push you out of your comfort zone!

My appetite was bigger than a couple pastries, so I walked to Yongkang Street, stopping at a 7-11 on the way. I’d heard about the wonders of convenience stores in Japan but didn’t realize they existed in Taiwan. As I walked up Yongkang Street, I passed at least 5 7-11s before I lost count! Truly a culture shock coming from the land of American 7-11s. There wasn’t much else open on Yongkang Street on an early Monday morning, but I did try some scallion pancakes at Tianjin Green Onion Pancake (really yummy) and some pastries at Sunmerry Dongmen (ehhh). It was a short walk to Da’an Park, which was a perfect spot to eat with a view of the lake. The serenity of the park was a great escape from the urban hecticness, but it was far too humid to enjoy the views for too long.

I headed back to collect my luggage from the main station and made my way to Meeting Mates Hostel to check in. Even though my bed wasn’t made yet, I was absolutely wiped from the travels and my morning adventure, so I promptly fell asleep on a thin mattress with no pillow or blanket. After waking up, I ran into the hostel worker who had tried to set up my bunk but instead found me passed out. He was trying not to laugh but he wasn’t very good at it…

Anyway, I set off to the Taipei 101 area and checked out the mall on the lower floors. When it was close to sunset, I bought tickets for the observatory and waited in line for the elevator to take me 1,285 feet in the air (tallest building in the world 2004-2010).

The observatory was amazing and featured various coffee and pastry shops (and your entry ticket comes with a coupon for them!) and flowery decorations near the windows. The view was great, especially at sunset, but my favorite part was the tuned mass damper (TMD): a gigantic ball at the top of the skyscraper to help stabilize the building during strong winds and earthquakes. It was so cool to see something we learned in our physics and calculus class exist and work in one of the world’s tallest buildings.

After some boba and snacks, the sky darkened (too cloudy for a real sunset) and the city lights slowly flickered on. The view from the main observatory (89th floor) and open-air viewpoint (91st floor) was amazing and I stayed up there for quite some time. Once I had taken enough photos to fill a hard drive, I took the train to Raohe Night Market, a famous and highly recommended night market. A slight detail: finding the exit was much harder than expected and took me asking 3 people and 20 minutes of walking before finally finding it.

I had heard the food in these Taiwanese Night Markets was legendary, but I was blown away. I had arguably the best chicken of my life (and it was served on a stick), some Tanghulu fruit (delicious and sugar-coated), a crepe (it was alright), played some rigged claw machines, and ended the night at this old-school arcade where I won enough tickets for a rubber mushroom. At around 11PM, I left to check out the rainbow bridge (which was not rainbow-colored) and headed to the hostel. I decided to eat a chicken cutlet I had left over from the market because I was too full, fully expecting the cold chicken to be subpar. Instead, it was the second-best chicken of my life and I couldn’t help but reflect on the quality of the food I had eaten at an unassuming night market. Satisfied, I fell asleep (on a bed with a pillow and blanket) quickly.

Given the sheer number of things I did the day before, you’d think I take it easy, right? Nope! I woke up, grabbed breakfast at FamilyMart (another legendary convenience store), and took a train to Shilin with hopes of catching a bus to Yangmingshan National Park. The bus ended up being delayed for hours, so I instead walked around the area for a bit and eventually called an Uber to the bus terminal stop of Yangmingshan. I took the Bus 108 which goes in a loop around the park, and got off at Xiaoyoukeng. It was a little stressful, but showing the driver where I wanted to go on my phone was effective. Once at Xiaoyoukeng, I checked out the famous volcanic fumaroles, which were pumping out steam like a factory. The yellow-colored sulfur rocks were also a unique sight (and smell) to behold.

From there, I began the hour-long hike to Qixingshan Peak by following the trail signs. The hike involved a lot of ascent, but wasn’t necessarily difficult). At the top, the views of the park were nice, but the views of Taipei were covered by clouds. Oh well, I decided to sit down and eat some pocky sticks for a few minutes. As fate would have it, the clouds soon opened and presented the view of the entirety of Taipei below; you could see everything from Taipei 101 standing tall to the various rivers cutting through the city. I hiked my way to the neighboring peak (~20-minute walk) and ate my FamilyMart sandwich I had packed for lunch while enjoying the breathtaking view of the lush greenery around me and the urban landscape below. The descent to Lengshuikeng provided stunning views all the way down. Lengshuikeng is known for its hot springs, but ~5 minutes after reaching, the S15 bus arrived, so I skipped the springs and ran for the bus (and nearly fell) because it was time to get back into the city.

The S15 was more like a large van than a bus and was packed like sardines. Driving down the bumpy mountain with nothing to grab onto was one of the most physically demanding things I’ve done, and flying into Taiwanese grandpas who were somehow standing still definitely didn’t help my image as a foreigner. After 20 grueling minutes, I made it to the station where I caught a train to Ximen to meet some of my friend Baron’s local friends: Skyler, Ethan, and Steven.

They showed me around the Ximen district, first stopping at Eslite Spectrum Bookstore on the lower levels of a building. The upper levels featured an arcade, batting range, and shooting range. It was my first time at a batting range, and it was a blast. I was a pro at shooting (coming from Boy Scouts) and absolutely annihilated the paper target. All that hitting and shooting worked up an appetite, so we got dinner at Ying Gang Shi Dim Sum for some chicken and noodles. The chicken was delicious—not as much as the night market, but enough to make me realize that Taiwanese people know their way around a chicken. Dessert was some syrupy, delicious Hong Kong-style French toast.

For dessert part 2, they took me to a traditional shaved ice spot, Yang Ji Peanut Corn Ice, where we had shaved ice topped with boba, sweet potato balls, gelatin, and some syrup. To burn the calories, we hopped on a YouBike (a cheap bicycle with stands throughout the city) and biked to Dadaocheng Pier. We enjoyed the calming and grabbed a local beer while people-watching. Turns out, high school graduation was that same day, so a lot of people were wearing roses pinned on their shirts (as is the custom there) and gathering in big groups to celebrate. We then decided to walk to Beiman Station and enter the Taipei City Mall as our last stop.

The mall housed hundreds of small shops, claw machine areas, and arcades. To ensure I had a proper Taiwan experience, we went to an arcade and played a rhythm game: a common arcade game where you have to tap certain buttons based on the song rhythm, similar to Guitar Hero but with more buttons and no guitar. I thought I was doing well until I saw some absolute professionals there, donning gloves and headphones to ensure perfect performances. We continued to walk to the main station and parted ways to our respective homes. I’m really grateful to Skyler, Ethan, and Steven for showing me around and I realized that having local contacts gives you access to things that you wouldn’t otherwise know about as a solo traveler (like the batting range and dinner spot). After a quick stop at FamilyMart since I’m an addict, I called it a night.

The next morning started with a visit to a nearby covered market, Dongsanshui Street Market. I wandered around and worked up the courage to get some Taiwanese fried chicken. It was an extremely local market and I was getting a lot of side-eyes from the grandmas running the stalls. It was all worth it, though, because the chicken was the third-best chicken of my life and hit the spot like nothing else. After another scallion pancake from a stall outside the market, I made my way to the Rainbow Bridge from the first night and picked up a YouBike by the riverfront. I was biking along the southern riverbank when I felt a drop (followed by 10000000 more). I put on my raincoat and considered aborting the bike ride, but the show must go on! Plus, I was already soaked so it couldn’t get much worse.

The Southern bank was nice but a bit bland and the construction caused me to make some wrong turns. Eventually, I crossed a major bridge (note: the bike lanes are on the side of the car lanes and you don’t have to be in the street). On the Northern bank, the trail followed the river closely and I was treated to gorgeous views of the mountains shrouded in fog and mist. I stopped to take one too many photos, and as punishment for my hubris, my bike fell over on one of these stops and my sunglasses (which were in the basket) fell into the river. Eventually, I made it to the breathtaking Guandu Temple. I parked my bike, went inside, and took in the sights of this colorful, majestic temple. After asking around for some help, I completed the incense ritual and paid my respects before leaving and hopping back on my bike. From the temple, the beautiful riverside route was straightforward to Tamsui MRT.

At Tamsui, I bought an umbrella from the station FamilyMart and explored the area. I was starving after my 11-mile bike ride, so I got coffee and cheesy potatoes at Enjoyfly Cafe (meh but got the job done). The Tamsui area had some incredibly aesthetic streets and alleys, so I had the time of my life exploring all the meandering roads. I was super excited to see crowded streets with overlapping vertical light-up signs for every store (the classic East Asia tech city shot that you see everywhere). These streets were perfect for that vibe, especially for the rain. After taking one (hundred) too many photos, I hopped on the red line to Xiangshan. Fun fact: The red line originates in Tamsui and ends in Xiangshan, so I rode it the entire distance! I thought that was so cool

Halfway through, I took a quick break at the main station to buy my high-speed rail (HSR) tickets for the next day. Keep reading to find out what they’re for!

I walked from Xiangshan to the A13 mall (the malls are labeled with A + number in this area—not sure why, but it’s an efficient system). The mall was spacious and had a lot of different stores, but I was a man on a mission. I headed to Din Tai Fung and signed up for the waiting list (only 15 minutes, which is a benefit of this branch as opposed to the Taipei 101 branch). I could put in my order on my phone while waiting outside, and when my number was called, I was ushered to my table by a cute robot. Once there, my order was confirmed by the staff and I was given some delicious warm jasmine tea. The tea revived me after a day spent in the rain, and I sipped while looking around in admiration of the efficiency of the restaurant: it was packed, but the combination of early ordering and robots made the process seamless. Din Tai Fung is widely credited for expanding xiao long bao (soup dumplings, common at dim sum spots around the US). They serve these dumplings with world-class precision, with 18 folds each, weighing 21 grams. I got an order of these dumplings along with a taro bun. The dumplings were amazing and it was my first time having Xiao Long Bao since they offered a chicken option which is rare to see in the US. They were delicious and an amazing experience, but honestly didn’t beat out the street market and night market eats I had on this trip.

After paying for my meal at the front (again, the whole payment process was smooth and for the most popular restaurant in Taiwan, it was impressive), I set off. I walked past Taipei 101 enshrouded in mist, which made for some great pictures, and made my way to the Elephant Mountain trailhead. It was dark and raining, so I was a little apprehensive to hike up this trail alone (especially after almost stepping on the biggest snail I’d ever seen), but I decided to go for it. After all, it was only a 30-40 minute climb. At the midpoint, I was treated to amazing views of Taipei 101 emerging from the mist-covered city and neon lights below. The top view was actually not that great, since the fog had set in and Taipei 101 was barely visible at this distance. I would like to say I was calm and collected during the whole hike, but my heart rate was definitely 170+ when I heard ruffling in the bushes.

I took a train back to the hostel and had a classic “yap session” with some guys at the hostel, a Brit and a Chinese student. It’s always fun to meet new people in hostels, but I wish I had done this before so I could enjoy some evenings/nights with them. It would have been difficult, though, considering my limited time and packed schedule.

Speaking of a packed schedule, I woke up early the next day and visited Longshan Temple, the famous temple that is the namesake of the station next to my hostel. It was arguably more grand and ornate than Guandu Temple, but it was packed with locals and tourists alike, which detracted from the experience a little. I paid my respects before walking to the station and making my way to Ximen to get some vintage clothes. I soon realized that everything opened later than I thought, so I grabbed some Taiwanese fried chicken and boba at Xing Fu Tang. It’s supposed to be a bit of a tourist trap, but consider me trapped because that was the best brown sugar boba I’ve ever had. After a quick stroll around Ximen, I waited outside the Eslite Spectrum Wuchang mall until opening time. I was the first one in the mall and all the store owners were smiling and saying “hi” to me hoping I would go to their store, but instead, I awkwardly shuffled past them straight to the basement bathroom. I then made my way to some stores on the 3rd floor which had some great, albeit a little expensive, clothing. Based on some Reddit research, I ended up at XRAGE, a Japanese streetwear brand with a Taipei branch. The saleswoman was friendly and helped me understand the meaning behind the designs using ChatGPT, like how the shirt I thought looked cool was reminiscent of the Bosozoku (biker gang) style.

It was time to go to the main station and catch the high-speed train to Tainan. It was so much fun to ride on an Asian bullet train, and I made it across the country to Tainan in just about 90 minutes! To figure out where to go, I talked to this Taiwanese man who wanted to show off his knowledge of the US, like naming Yellowstone and California (which was impressive, albeit very, very tough to understand through his accent). Eventually, I hopped on the #2 bus and went to Anping in the torrential rain. Luckily, the rain had calmed down by the time I made it to the main canal, and I enjoyed walking along the canal as the sun came out for the first time in a week. The area around Anping was very historical and I enjoyed visiting the little shops to buy snacks and knick-knacks, but a lot of the historical sites (like Anping Old Fort) were closed because it was after 5 PM. I fed the koi fish outside the fort, walked to the adorable Totoro Mural, and eventually called an Uber to Chikan Tower because navigating the bus system took too long. When I arrived, there was a stunning rainbow arching above the toliets. I guess the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow was instead a porcelain pot of…well, you know.

I climbed up the historical tower, originally a Dutch outpost during the colonial period in the 17th century. The history was interesting since I hadn’t learned about Taiwanese history before, but the views of the city were a little lackluster. The additional tower next to the main one was also closed for renovation and inaccessible. It was a good spot to catch the sunset, though, and once dusk fell I set off the Night Flowers Market. Each night in Tainan features a different night market, and I got lucky planning my day trip on a day that the largest one, the Night Flowers market, was being held.

It was a 25ish minute walk, but the walk took me through the neon-lit streets of this bustling historic city. This was the exact vibe I was looking for out of an East Asia trip, so I had a lot of fun taking it all in. Eventually, I made it to the market which featured at least 10 rows of stalls with all kinds of food, carnival games, and even clothes. I lasted exactly 15 seconds before I bought a scallion pancake, barbecue chicken, and fried stinky tofu (the latter was just to use the tables the tofu stand had). The food was delicious, but not as great as Raohe in my opinion. I wandered around for about an hour, playing a claw machine game and winning stuffed corn in 2 tries (new PR!), buying some cheap shirts (including one with mistranslated English), and munching on banana cake, churros, and milk tea. The only slightly disconcerting thing was some of the seafood stands with fresh marine life and the resulting smell from cooking them, but such is life in a Taiwanese market.

I could have stayed there all night, but it was time to get an Uber back to the main station, catch a train to the high-speed rail station, and head back to Taipei. After finishing off any leftovers I had, I briefly chatted with my friend the night before and quickly crashed on my bunk.

On my last half-day in Taipei, I didn’t do any shopping or sightseeing. Instead, I was a man on a mission to see my favorite team, the Dallas Mavericks, in the NBA finals. I packed up my stuff, checked out of the hostel, dropped my luggage at the hostel lobby, and went to Charlie’s Sports Bar at 8:30 AM to catch the game. I was surprised that a bar was showing the game at such an early time, and I’m thankful to Reddit for the recommendation. For the price of entry, they provided a sandwich, food, and tea, and I had a great time meeting some Mavs fans. I would have had an even greater time if we had won

After some stops at 7-11 for refreshments, I picked up my things from the main station and took the train to the airport for the next leg of my trip. 掰掰 Taiwan!

Takeaways

• The night markets in Taiwan are an absolute must-visit. I can still taste the chicken I had there in my dreams…
• The nature in and around Taipei is amazing. Do some research ahead of time for Yangmingshan, though
• Having local contacts can show you a new side of the city that tourists wouldn’t typically see
• The temples in Taipei are legendary, and those off the beaten path (like Guandu) are even better
• Taipei 101 and its tuned mass damper is the dream of any engineering or physics student!

Rose-Bud-Thorn

Rose (what went well): The food was amazing. As my first experience in East Asia, I was a little worried about the local food options as someone who doesn’t eat beef or pork, but I was happily and pleasantly surprised.
Bud (what was good but could be improved on): My day at Yangmingshan was a little disorganized, partially because I was solo. From the delays for the bus to the hectic and jerky S15 shuttle back to the station, some legs of the journey were stressful. The park itself was gorgeous and this blog helped me out a ton.
Thorn (what did not go well): I wish the hostel was more social (+ I took more of an effort to reach out to people). My cycling route or my day at Yangmingshan would have been a lot of fun with some other travelers, especially since Reddit told me this is a social hostel. That’s the one issue with tight schedules and having multiple things to do every day: there’s little to no time to relax or to make plans with other travelers!

Bonus pictures because picking just 10 (like my other posts) was just too hard